


Jumped in January

by Emma (Mesperyian19)



Series: Murder Mysteries [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued, Assasins, Depression, Original work - Freeform, did
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-09
Updated: 2019-10-09
Packaged: 2020-11-28 12:15:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,410
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20966408
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mesperyian19/pseuds/Emma
Summary: An assassin has to make the choice between her only family and her own mind. With the temporary help of a would-be enemy, she has to see how far she can make it. Will she find her center or will she descend deeper?





	Jumped in January

**Author's Note:**

> I started this series a few years ago with a close friend of mine. We had the whole thing mapped out, even for a movie. Slowly lost motivation and confidence in it. Alright writing. Enjoy this blip from October 23, 2017.

I shifted my weight to the other foot as I sat in wait. I heard a trash bin clatter. I peered around the corner and saw it was only a cat looking for scraps. I looked up and down the alley once again. No sign of life other than the cat. I had been waiting in this alley in the same place for over two hours. I was hungry, but didn’t dare move for fear of catching someone’s eye. I don’t know about you, but if a girl dressed in a black suit with spiked boots appeared out of an alley in broad daylight, people might be suspicious.   
Another bin clattered, but this time it was on the other end of the alley. I peeked around the corner once again, but this time saw something different. A girl had wandered into the alley. She was dressed as a normal teenager would in this kind of heat; shorts, bright yellow tank top, sneakers, and hair in a ponytail. She was clutching something behind her back. The only thing strange about her was that she had a knife strapped to her hip.  
“Jade! What did I say about wearing that in the open?!” I leapt up from the place I was hiding.  
“What did I tell you about blending in with the crowd?!” she said, indicating my outfit.  
“Okay, okay. I just think that someone might get suspicious if a teenager was wearing a knife,” I said, holding up my hands.  
“Yeah right. Everyone in this city has a weapon, either hidden or in the open. But you on the other hand, if someone saw you wearing that in this heat, they just might get a wee bit suspicious,” she said sarcastically.  
“Ha ha ha. Very funny. Anyway, what are you doing here? This is my mission,” I walked over to her, glad to stretch my legs.  
“Jack sent me. Partly to make sure that you blended in,” she said again, “And to help you.”   
“I don’t need help. He knows that. What do you have behind your back?” I asked, starting to get suspicious.  
“Fine, you caught me. I snuck out with it when Jack sent me,” And with that she handed me my favourite weapon. A dagger with dragon carved hilt. It was balanced and fit perfectly in my hand just as it had 7 years ago.   
“Ohmygod! How did you get out with it? I keep it in my room,” I said as I turned back to face Jade.  
“Hey, we probably know all the secret passages in that place. I mean if we were to build a replica, it would be exactly alike,” she glanced at the dagger as though she was worried.  
“Hey, what’s wrong?” I asked.  
“Oh, I was just worried about how much trouble we’re going to get into when Jack finds out,” she said hastily.  
“Since when is the last time we haven’t gotten into trouble?” I laughed and Jade joined in as well.  
We immediately stopped when we heard a chuckle come from a shadow.  
“You really can’t hide yourselves,” came a rough voice. When I glanced around, I saw that other shadows were moving toward us. The shadow that had spoke detached itself from the wall and I could see him clearly. He had dark eyes with no mercy in them. Long, black hair was plastered to his face in the heat. The other men that had quickly surrounded us also had long, unkempt hair.  
“Who are you?” I asked, glancing back at the man.  
“Why would I tell you that? I’m not that stupid,” he gave a cold, empty laugh that was followed by more laughs from the other men.  
“Are you going to answer the question?” I asked, getting irritated.  
“My name is Leo, the older brother of your mentor,” he said, his tone that of utter disgust.  
“Don’t talk about him like that!” shouted Jade.  
“Oh, this is interesting. Are you trying to stand up for him?” he looked around at his men. “Is she actually trying to stand up for my no-good brother?” Leo and the men laughed again.  
“At least he can teach people whereas you have to rely on unstable thugs,” I retorted.  
“Adira, remember what Mom said, ‘Don’t play with your food before you eat it,” Jade said, roaring with laughter. I joined in, but immediately stopped.  
“Don’t ever say something like that in my presence.” Leo was a hair's breadth away.  
“Sorry. Didn’t know you were so sensitive,” I said, backing away.  
I glanced at Jade. She was in position to pounce if Leo did anything funny.  
Leo followed my eyes toward Jade. He chuckled again. “Don’t worry. Nothing is going to happen to your little sister. We’re merely going to allow her to be found, whereas you, young lady, we are going to take,” Leo snapped his fingers and the men surrounded Jade. “Now, if you want your sister to be alright, you’ll come with us willingly.” Leo turned to the men.  
“Take her to the fortress. I’ll deal with her once she is gone,” he waved over his shoulder toward me.  
I saw my chance as soon as Leo had turned around. His attention was on Jade and his men. I carefully moved forward and got ready to lunge. It would have been perfect. Except that one of the men’s attention drifted toward me instead of Leo.  
“Watch out,” he grunted and Leo turned around.  
“Really Adira? My, my, you really are a determined one. Come now, we mustn’t make things harder, especially in your case. You wouldn’t want your sister to get hurt, would you?” He snapped his fingers once again and I heard a fist meet flesh and a grunt of pain.  
“No! Stop, please! I’ll do what you want, just don’t hurt her!” I cried.  
“See, much better. Now, I would suggest not to try anything while it’s just you and me. I can always send a message,” He turned back to his men again. I knew better than to do anything. Any sudden movement would mean Jade getting hurt. But, I knew how to get around that. I steadily started to step backward. If my plan worked I could get to the end of the alleyway and slip away. I could then follow Leo back to his base and get Jade back.   
I was almost to the end of the street when Leo turned around. I turned and started running, but something Leo said stopped me.  
“My dear, you don’t want Jade to suffer anymore, do you?” He asked, his voice flooded with sarcasm.  
I was shaking with anger and that is one emotion that you do not want to make decisions with.  
“If you would just come with me, Jade will not be harmed,” Leo said, slowly making his way toward me. The men stayed where they were, but I could tell they were growing anxious. I looked back to Leo. His hands were moving as if pulling a rope toward himself.   
I tried to control myself, but nothing was going to stand in the way of me making sure Jade was safe. I reluctantly stepped toward Leo and he stopped moving his hands.  
“See? That´s a good girl,” He spread his arms and leaned back, as nonchalant in the world. I forced myself to close the distance between us and when I was a few steps away, Leo grabbed my wrist.  
“Hey! Get your filthy paws off me!” I struggled against him, but his grip was like iron.   
“Adira! Please don't,” I hear a voice from the circle of men and immediately stop.  
“Thank you, Jade. Now, take her back to the fortress. Adira and I will follow,” he waved his hand and the thugs dispersed. I could see Jade between them with a bloody lip and red cheek.  
“What do you want?” I ask as I turn back to Leo.   
“Well, you see, I want you and your sister. Your sister mostly to add some talent to my workers. As for you, I want to exploit what makes you such a great assassin. I want you to work with me,” Leo circled around me as I fumed.   
“What makes me a good fighter is constant training.” My eyes followed him in his pacing.  
“See, I don’t think that is all. I think that you have something up here.” He placed a gentle hand on the side of my head. I tensed, but didn’t move away.  
“That’s a good girl,” Leo came back around to face me. “Please, let me help you. In return, I can give you much better training than Jack can.”  
“If I stay with you, will you send Jade back?” I closed my eyes and pictured Jade’s face. I was willing to give up everything to see her safe.  
“Jade can of course go back with Jack,” he strode behind me again and placed his hands on my shoulders. “That is, if she wants to. If she wishes to stay, I can offer her shelter and nourishment.”   
“She’ll go back. I’ll make sure she does.” The pressure soon left as Leo firmly took my wrist and led me around the back of the alley. Sitting there was a black truck. Leo got in the driver’s seat and I had no choice but to get in the passenger side.  
We sat in silence as Leo steered us through a maze of streets. I kept my eyes on my clenched hands. I had no idea if I was making the right choice, but if it meant Jade was safe, I would go through with it. As I thought about all the years of training that Jack put into us, I started to giggle. It was falling apart! My entire life was going down the drain because of the way I had been raised. My parents told me to protect Jade no matter what. Then, Jack comes along and completely turned my life around, telling me that the only one I should worry and care about is myself.   
I knew I had disappointed him during training a few weeks ago. He had set up a practice dummy that was decked out in Jade’s normal clothes. He had told me that if I wanted to be a great assassin, I couldn’t have a heart. That could even mean fighting my own sister. I had tried so hard, but I just couldn’t bring myself to land a fatal blow on the dummy. Eventually, Jack had given me a small knife and told me to “kill” the dummy. At that point I ran from the room, the blade clattering out of my hand.   
Later that night, I skipped dinner. I locked the door to my training room and set up three dummies, one each of Jade, Jack, and Mr. Lay. I brought out the weapons rack and selected the smallest weapon, that being the knife that I had practiced with earlier. I started with Mr. Lay, quickly slicing the dummy’s throat. Moving onto Jade, I turned it around and quite literally stabbed her in the back. Coming to Jack, I slashed the limbs, then lopped off the head. Stepping back to admire my handiwork, I heard footsteps running down the hall. I sighed and put the knife back.   
I unlocked the door and quickly hid in the supply room. I could hear Jack calling for me as well as Mr. Lay. Jade didn’t seem to be with them. I hid for over half the night, waiting, just waiting for someone to find me. After waiting another hour, I left the training room and simply wandered around the facilities. I sat in Mr. Lay’s room for who knows how long. I slowly got up and went to the board. I don’t remember writing anything, but when I stepped back, there was a completed hangman game. The man was dead and the word was HELP. Again, I didn’t remember walking, but I ended up in my and Jade’s room. I glanced at her sleeping form and started to extract my clothes from the dresser. I collected the few books that I had and set them on my bed. I scribbled a note that said, ‘I want a new room’ on it and then left. I didn’t know where I was going, but I decided that I wanted my life to go back to normal. I stepped out into the cool night air and took a breath. It had been a long couple years without being outside. I now understood why all of the trainees were so pale.   
I started walking, letting my mind lead me to my destination. When my eyes refocused, I found that I was at the playground where Jack found Jade and I. I sat down on the swing and started to rock back and forth. ‘What was I doing? How will I protect Jade?’ I thought as I sat there. As I stood up and headed back, I had a revelation. ‘Jack can do whatever he wants to try to separate us, but Jade is the only family I have left and I will protect her with everything I have.’  
When I came to, I realised that I remembered. Up until this point, that memory had been a blank space in my mind. I continued the crazed laughter that had started at the beginning of the flashback, not noticing Leo trying to shake me until it was too late. I lunged for him.  
“If you hurt Jade, I swear to god, nobody will ever find your body.” I stared at Leo with unnaturally bright eyes. He gazed back at me with terrified ones. He slowly reached a hand out and put pressure on my neck. I felt sudden and intense calm, then everything was black.  
I cracked my eyes open and glanced around. I was in a plain room with a glass front. When I sat up, my entire body ached. I stretched and looked around again. I was laying on a mattress with a thin blanket. I stood up and turned around. There was a mirror in the corner. My attention was drawn by tapping on the glass. I was faced with Leo smiling at me. He tapped the glass again.  
“Sorry about this, but I didn’t have another room.” His voice was muffled, as if underwater. I pressed my forehead against the glass.   
“Don’t worry, I’ll bring you out soon. My...friends want to study you a bit. After your episode, I really want to know what’s going on in your head. It might help you.” He stepped away and turned his back on me. I banged again on the glass. He turned back around. I pointed to myself and then traced another person in the air.  
“Don’t worry. Jade is sleeping right now. You will get to talk to her soon.” He walked away again and I sat down on the mattress. Another person walked up to the glass. It was a girl with dark hair and glasses. She tapped at something on the wall and the glass retracted into the ceiling. She stepped into the room and offered me her hand. I took it and she pulled me up, leading me into the room beyond. It was packed with lab equipment and computers. A few people sat here and there reading and typing at computers. The girl took me to a medical table and pointed at it. I sat down on it and waited while she got several hospital instruments.   
“Um, I don’t mean to bother, but what are you testing?” I asked as she stuck adhesive pads to my temples. She didn’t respond at first, but soon shook her head, signalling that she couldn’t talk to me. I busied myself by watching the monitor connected to the pads. It was static for a moment, then started making rising and dipping mountains. The girl glanced at the monitor once and yelped. She ran out of the lab.  
A moment later, she came running back with Leo close on her heels. She pointed at the monitor, but Leo was already reading the results at the computer. He whispered a few things to the girl and she walked off. Soon, she came back with a man who looked to be in his mid 30’s. He took a look at the monitor and then sat down at the computer. Leo came around the table and gently picked up my hand.  
“It will take Adam a while to figure out the results. In the meantime, Jade is awake and wants to see you.” Leo led me out of the lab and down a long corridor, doors leading off to unknown places. We stopped at one and he opened it, revealing a room with a bed, nightstand, and dresser. Jade was pacing back and forth in the middle.  
“Jade?” I stepped into the room and Leo closed the door. When she noticed me, she raced over and tackled me in a bear hug.  
“Ohmygod, Adira! Are you okay? Where have you been?” She quickly ran her hands over my arms, feeling for any injuries.  
“Jade, I’m fine. How are you?” I in turn looked her over. She looked well rested and had fresh clothes on.  
“I’m alright. What happened after I left?” She had the same worried look in her eye as when she gave me my knife.  
“Leo talked to me and then we came here.” I avoided her gaze, knowing that she’ll figure out that I made a deal with Leo.  
“What did he say? Adira, what did you do?” She forced my face up with her hand under my chin. My eyes started watering, but I looked away.  
“You’re going back to Jack. You’ll be safe with him.” I left the room, Jade still staring at me. Leo was leaning on the wall outside. Tears started rolling down my cheeks as I sat down next to him, my head on my knees. Leo pulled me up and wrapped his arms around me. I knew I should be shrugging him off, but I just couldn’t find the energy.   
“What did you say?” he asked once I had calmed down.  
“I told her she was going back with Jack. He’ll have to come here otherwise she won’t leave.” I let him lead me back to the lab. I went back to my cell and sat down on the mattress.  
“I’ll come back in a bit with the results.” Leo reassured me as he lowered the glass again.  
I turned over, facing the wall. I knew my connection with Jade had been shaky ever since that day when I moved into a new room. As I thought about the way I had “killed” the dummy, a giggle erupted from my lips. `Oh no, not again.’ I thought, but couldn’t stop. I had stabbed Jade in the back just how I had with her dummy. I had betrayed her, I had betrayed my parents. I had promised to keep Jade close to me and now she was going back to Jack without me. What would I say to Jack when he came? Would I tell him what I had done or would I stay silent? I got up and banged on the glass again. The same girl that had started my testing came over. I tried talking, but she just shook her head. I scanned the room and found Leo. I pointed to him and the girl nodded. Leo followed her back and opened the cell.  
“What’s wrong?” He questioned.  
“You need to call Jack right now. You need to tell him that you have us and that I request that he personally pick us up.” I pleaded with him.  
“Calm down, Adira. Why now?” Leo said.  
“Jade needs to go now. She has to learn that she has to live without me. If she stays here, she’ll know I’m just down the hall. Jack will train her better than he could me. She doesn’t have a promise.” I look down as I say the last part.  
“Well, if you insist, I’ll get someone on the phone to him right now.” Leo looked at me and then stepped away. “Adam has figured out your results, would you like to come see them?” He held out his hand. I took a deep breath and stood up.  
“Show me.”


End file.
